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Welcome back to our top starting pitcher fantasy baseball prospects to stash for Week 24 of the 2024 MLB season. Today, we'll be taking a look at top MLB pitching prospects, including a handful of pitchers who are looking quite sharp at Triple-A.
Several of the sport's top pitching prospects who have been recurring members of this column, such as Zebby Matthews, Spencer Schwellenbach, and David Festa, have begun to settle in at the major league level and are no longer "stash" options. As a result, we have a few new faces making this column for the first time.
As the baseball season progresses, top prospects can have the opportunity to replace an injured player and immediately become valuable in fantasy. Below are five pitching prospects worth stashing in redraft leagues in Week 24.
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Top Fantasy Baseball Prospect Stashes
Bubba Chandler - Pittsburgh Pirates (Currently At Triple-A, 2% rostered)
Once again, the promising young Bucco Bubba Chandler holds the top spot in the stash ranking. Despite not being promoted when the rosters expanded this past weekend, there's still a strong possibility of his major league debut in 2024.
In his recent outing at Triple-A, Chandler tossed five innings of one-run ball (zero earned), allowing just three hits and two walks. He struck out five.
This was an excellent sign for the 21-year-old as he struggled in his previous start, allowing three earned runs, which was the most he has given up at Triple-A to date.
Bubba Chandler dials it up to 99.3 mph as the @Pirates' No. 1 prospect lowers his @indyindians ERA to 1.17:
5 IP
3 H
1 R (0 ER)
2 BB
5 K pic.twitter.com/pPHDwneWRq— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) August 28, 2024
Since joining the Indianapolis Indians, the top prospect in the Steel City sits with a sparkling 1.17 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, and a 6:28 BB:K ratio across 23 innings of work.
Brandon Sproat - New York Mets (Currently At Triple-A, 1% rostered)
Sproat has struggled to adjust to Triple-A, but his recent outing on September 1 suggests he may be getting the hang of it. In this start, he logged 5 ⅓ shutout frames with just two hits and no walks. He struck out six, the most he has recorded in a Triple-A start.
This is a big step in his development, as the Florida product had an 8.83 ERA and a 1.62 WHIP in his first four appearances at Triple-A Syracuse. Earlier this season at Double-A, the former second-round selection in last year’s draft posted a strong 2.45 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP.
If the Mets remain in the playoff picture, Sproat could be deployed as a reinforcement down the stretch.
Quinn Mathews- St. Louis Cardinals (Currently At Triple-A, 1% rostered)
The St. Louis southpaw has been one of the biggest risers on prospect boards this summer and earned another promotion this past week as he now resides at Triple-A Memphis. This is an incredible feat, as he opened the season by making his Single-A debut.
In his first start at the top level of the minors, the Stanford product surrendered three runs across four frames while striking out seven. This was not his best outing by any stretch, but it was promising to see his elite swing-and-miss potential play at Triple-A.
Earlier this summer, across the other three levels of the Cardinals system, the 2023 fourth-round pick posted a strong 2.27 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, and an incredible 35:180 BB:K ratio across 126 innings of work.
Quinn Mathews’ final line:
7 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 11 K
Pure domination tonight from Mathews. It was his 6th game this year in which he struck out 10 or more hitters, leading minor league baseball. pic.twitter.com/xRDJodl25U
— Kareem (@KareemSSN) August 18, 2024
While it may take another handful of starts at Triple-A, fantasy managers looking for an upside play to push them over the edge in the playoffs should take a look at Mathews.
AJ Smith-Shawver - Atlanta Braves (Currently At Triple-A, 5% rostered)
The No. 2 prospect in Atlanta has battled injuries this summer but has been working his inning count back up at Triple-A and could be back in the major leagues very soon.
In his latest start at Triple-A Gwinnett on Sunday, the right-hander tossed five shutout frames with three punchouts. He allowed just three hits and one free pass.
Smith-Shawver has logged at least five innings across his past three starts and is clearly past the oblique strain that kept him sidelined during most of June.
11th whiff for AJ Smith-Shawver comes on this 83 MPH changeup, his 6th K.
5IP 3H 0R 1BB 6K pic.twitter.com/dzjrc4K3vW
— Gaurav (@gvedak) August 22, 2024
He logged 25 ⅓ innings at the major league level last season to the tune of a 4.26 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP.
Currently, the Braves operate with a five-man rotation and hold a slight lead on the final Wild Card spot. They may look to add Smith-Shawver to their roster to not only save their bullpen but give their starters some extra rest down the stretch.
Jackson Jobe - Detroit Tigers (Currently At Double-A, 9% rostered)
The top pitching prospect in the sport continues to remain on this list even though he still resides at Double-A. In his most recent start at Double-A, Jobe logged only 1 ⅔ innings of work as he surrendered four baserunners and ran into trouble early.
However, since the start of July, the right-hander has held an excellent 2.05 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, and a 25:46 BB:K ratio across 48 ⅓ innings of work. While his walk rate has remained a bit high, he showcased high potential to work out of jams and avoid further damage.
The Tigers recently promoted Ty Madden from Triple-A to fill a spot in the rotation. If Madden struggles through his first look at the majors, Jobe could still find a path to seeing a few starts down the stretch. However, every week he remains in the minor leagues, the door slowly begins to shut for 2024 and turns to 2025.
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